What are the best ways to learn photography? Workshops? WPPI?

What are the best ways to learn the craft of photography? Workshops? WPPI?

Dave: I would absolutely swear by going to WPPI at least for a few years until you’re comfortable with what’s happening, and then you can sort of make an educated decision about whether you’re going to do it every year or every other year, etc. It’s great for networking, great to see what’s happening and great to see what’s new with photography technology-wise.

Taylor: I found that Skip Summer School was awesome. It was in Vegas, also at the MGM. It sucks because it is Vegas in August and that means it’s hot, but where it was in the year for me was perfect. I shot a wedding on Saturday, left Sunday, spent until Thursday there and shot a wedding on Friday. And the amount of people I met was fantastic. I didn’t think it benefited me then, but it laid a solid foundation for immersing myself in the industry.

This year, I went to WPPI but I didn’t do very much. I sat in on a few speakers but I didn’t go out of my way to submerse myself in the WPPI environment because there are so many people there – and I was also with my girlfriend who’s not a photographer. But I did like the intimacy of Skips Summer School – all the speakers had great stuff to say.

Dave: What I like about WPPI is the fact that even if you sit on someone speaking for two hours, you get a better idea of whether or not you want to take their workshop or follow their work. I think having a week to focus on something and set some business goals is also a good idea. If you can, take the Plus Class – the two days before WPPI starts – which is what we did with Sallee Photography and JB Smith, and it really re-charged us. One little thing you learn in Vegas will change your financial state for years – you can really fix any problems going on in your career.

Taylor: I also wrote this video blog on my website, and it’s a write-up about how to do Vegas without spending too much money. I’ve been there about 19 times, so check it out on http://www.taylorjacksonblog.com. If you want to do WPPI for cheap it is possible, and even if you just go down for the trade show and keep your ears open for any events, you’ll meet great people and learn a lot.

And with workshops, I’ve done a few, but I use them primarily for networking. I personally like shooting workshops the best and I like to sit in on as many speakers as I can because you can learn different perspectives. I wouldn’t say any one speaker’s revolutionized the way I do business, but they’ve all contributed one way or another to my craft now.

Dave: I’ve done a few workshops, but not tons. I think Vegas can be a teaser for something else you want to do. I’m a huge supporter of Jerry Ghionis so if you’re thinking of taking a workshop, check out the Art Society first and sign up for that.

Taylor: It’s really cool to check out his technique, and that’s why I originally signed up for the ICE Society – because I just thought his process behind getting the photos is so the opposite of what I was doing that it was so cool to watch him come up with this stuff.